LPO-50
The LPO-50 (Lyogkiy Pyekhotnyy Ognyemyot (Легкий Пехотный Огнемет), "light infantry flamethrower") was a Soviet infantry flamethrower developed after the Second World War, and the last true flamethrower in Soviet service. History The LPO-50 was developed in the aftermath of the Second World War to provide a replacement for the Soviet ROKS flamethrower series. It was replaced in Soviet service by the RPO Rys napalm rocket launcher starting in the mid-70s, and had been withdrawn from service by the 80s. Design Details The LPO-50 is a rather unconventional system based on the WW2 British flame fougasse concept, which had already formed the basis of the Soviet FOG flame mine series. In this system, rather than fuel being ejected using compressed propellant gas, an explosive compression charge incorporated into the fuel tank is detonated, forcing the fuel out though the barrel of the flame gun. This has the advantage of being lighter, safer and simpler than a conventional flamethrower's propulsion system, though it also means the system fires a set number of times rather than in a constant stream. In the case of the LPO-50, the weapon has three distinct shots, each of which lasts 2-3 seconds. This is controlled using a four-position fire selector switch on the side of the flame gun, with one setting for each tank and a safe position (the trigger has an additional safe/fire selector). As a result of this limted number of shots, the LPO-50 is a very rare example of a flamethrower with iron sights. Due to Soviet cold-weather requirements, the ignition system and compression system both use pyrotechnic cartridges. These are electrically triggered, with the system requiring four 1.5-volt batteries for power. The battery compartment is in the flame gun's stock, and is accessed by pushing a catch which allows the buttplate to hinge downwards. The three ignition cartridges are mounted in a cluster at the weapon's muzzle, each rigged to one of the three fire settings on the tank selector. When the trigger is pulled, one of the cartridges is automatically triggered. After all three shots have been fired, the ignition cartridges on the flame gun are manually replaced and the fuel tanks either swapped out or re-filled and re-fitted with compression charges. Like the ROKS-2 and ROKS-3, the LPO-50 was designed to make it more difficult to identify flamethrower troops by disguising the flame gun as a standard infantry arm. In the LPO-50's case the flame gun is designed to look like a light machine gun, even sporting a bipod which is of very little practical use. Unlike the ROKS flamethrowers which had a working bolt action, there is no mechanical action on the LPO-50 flame gun. A thick hose is used to connect the tanks to the flame gun: there is also a wire connector that runs from the flame gun to the tanks, which sends the electrical detonation signal to the compression charges. A series of cable-routing loops mounted along the fuel hose are provided, which the wire connector can be tucked into to prevent it from snagging and potentially breaking. Ammunition The LPO-50's fuel was either regular fuel-grade diesel or diesel with an added thickening agent to increase range. Each tank contained 0.73 gallons (3.3 liters). Variants LPO-50 Original Soviet variant. TPO-50 Somewhat obscure derivative system using a similar propulsion method, but much larger 5.5 gallon (21 liter) tanks each with its own barrel and an internal piston, mounted on a wheeled carriage. At least one Chinese T-34/85 was converted with two boxes each mounting six TPO-50 barrel/tank units, mounted on the sides of the turret and rigged to elevate with the main gun. Type 74 Chinese copy with two fuel tanks instead of three, as the Chinese military regarded the original system as too heavy. References Category:Flamethrowers